February 2010

February 23, 2010

Chicago Bulls mascot Benny the Bull has never been afraid to mix it up with the high-priced talent in the floor seats at NBA games. Just because he was working All-Star Saturday in Dallas -- home of the 3-point, skills and slam dunk contests, among others -- didn't mean he'd change his routine.

The difference, of course, is the front row contained All-Stars of its own, so Benny did his best to make Jay-Z feel comfortable with a spot-on performance of Beyonce's dance in the "Single Ladies" video.

While Spike Lee was cracking up a few seats down, Jay and Diddy, who was sitting in the next seat, strained to pretend they couldn't even see the mascot dancing two feet in front of them. Come on guys, lighten up and give some props to a fellow performer doing his job -- entertaining the crowd.

February 12, 2010

Dr. Dre filed a lawsuit against his former record label in federal court Thursday in Los Angeles, claiming it released a new version of The Chronic without his permission and hasn't paid him royalties since he left Death Row in 1996.

"When it came to paying artist royalties and honoring limits on Dr. Dre recordings that could be released, the 'new' Death Row Records, to quote our client, 'forgot about Dre,'" attorney Howard King said in a statement. "This lawsuit will make sure they remember."

The label, renamed WIDEawake Death Row Records after the original went bankrupt and was purchased by WIDEawake Entertainment Group, released The Chronic Re-Lit last year. A Dr. Dre greatest hits collection called Chronicles also was released in 2007 by Death Row. Neither were released with his permission or his cooperation, according to Dre, whose real name is Andre Young.

Dre also claims in the suit that his original contract did not include digital distribution rights, yet the new owners of the label have been selling digital copies of The Chronic. The album originally dropped in 1992.